The present invention relates to a liquid separator.
More specifically, the invention relates to a liquid separator comprising a vessel with an inlet for a liquid/gas mixture and whereby this vessel also defines a space which is sealed at the top by means of a lid in which is situated an outlet to discharge treated gas, whereby in the above-mentioned space, a shield is provided extending around the above-mentioned outlet as of the above-mentioned lid, and a filter element provided within said shield, such that an outlet zone is defined between the shield and the filter element.
An existing type of liquid separator is described in the Belgian patent No. 1,018,543, whereby said shield is realized in the shape of a pipe extending around said outlet as from said lid.
Upon entry of the liquid/gas mixture via said inlet into the vessel, the liquid pre-separation takes place, typically by cyclonic flow of the liquid/gas mixture between the vessel wall and said shield inside the vessel. Advantageously, but not necessarily, one or both of said vessel wall and said shield are cylindrically shaped.
The liquid/gas mixture might for example be an oil/air mixture coming from the outlet of an oil injected compressor.
A further separation takes place by means of said filter element that is positioned within the shield, in case of BE 1,018,543 around said outlet.
A drawback of the known set-up is the limited flexibility. Generally the design is made for the greatest flow and is oversized for smaller flows.
The liquid that passes through the liquid separator filter element is usually collected in a reservoir and scavenged out of the liquid separator by means of a tube, also known as the ‘scavenge line’.
A disadvantage of such tube is that it is sensitive to deformation during assembly which can have adverse effect on the scavenge principle and hence result in contamination of the discharge with liquid.